woolf



V UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELLIS J WOOLF, OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR TO THE WOOLF VALVE GEAR COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming'part of Letters Patent No. 531,285, dated December 18,1894.

Application filed March 9, 1894. Serial No. 503,047. (No model.)

To all whom itmay concern.-

Be it known that I, ELLIS J. WOOLF, acm- 5 of Minnesota, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Engines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,

and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use'the same.

My invention relates to engines, and is directed to improvements in the valve mechanism for the same, with a view of obtaining the most effective distribution, both on simple and on compound engines.

The engine herein disclosed embodies some of the features described and claimedin cer tain prior United States patents of mine, identified as follows, to wit: Patent No. 475,427, of date May 24, 1892, to Ellis J. Woolf, entitled single cylinder compound engine, and Patent- No. 521,27 8, of date June 12, 1894, to Ellis J. Woolf, entitled engines. 1

features, which .will be hereinafter fully described and be defined in the claims.

panying drawings, in which, like letters and figures referring to like parts Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section, showing my improved valve mechanism, as applied to a simple engine, with some parts broken away, and with the valve shownin its central position. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section, showing my valve mechanism, as applied to a double compound engine, with some parts broken away, and with the valve shown in its central position. Fig. 3 is a similar view, through the valve and valve-seat illustrated in Fig. 2, but with thevalve show n in its out ofi position.

Referring first to Fig. 1, the numerals 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 represent respectively, the'c'ylinder, the piston, the valve-seat, the valvechest, the valve, and the valve-rod of a simple engine; and the numeral 7 represents the inlet from the supply pipe to the valve-chest 4.-

The valve-seat 3 is constructed with a pair of supply ports a, a pair of admission ports a, and a single exhaust port b.

The valve 5 is constructedwith four internal cavities c d, one set or pair, at each end, which said cavities c d are separated by the bridge wall f. The outer end walls of the valve cavities o'arefprovided with laps o,

controlling the admission from the supply portsa to the said cavities c; and the inner ends of the said valve cavities d have, on the bridge walls fi laps at controlling the admission to the cylinder ports a through said cavities d. The inner walls of the valve cavity c are provided with laps p controlling the exhaust from the cylinder ports a through the said cavity 0 to the exhaust port I); and the outer ends of the said valve cavities d have, on the walls f, laps d? controlling the exhaust from the cylinder ports a through said cavitiesd to said final exhaust port I). It should be noted that the valve cavities c are always in communication with their cooperating cylinder ports a; and that the valve cavities d are in communication with the exhaust port b, when the valve is central.

v Having regard to the action, let attention be Mypresent invention involves several novel given to the distribution at one end of the cyl- 7 5 inder, for example, the right end. Suppose v now that the valve be thrown toward the right The invention is illustrated in the accom-f into the extreme of its travel. Them-it is obvious that both the cavities cand d will connect the cylinder port a, with the supplyport a, and the said cavitiesc and 01 will thereby 'cooperate to give an increased available admission area to the cylinder port a, for agiven valve travel. Again, suppose the valve to be thrown toward the left into the extreme of its travel. Then, it is obvious that both of said valve cavities o and d, will connect the said cylinder port a with the exhaust port b, and will thereby cooperate to give an increased available: exhaust area, for a-given valve travel. If attention should be given to the distribution at the other or left end of the cylinder, in Fig. 1, it would appear that the corresponding actions would take place in exactly the same way, but in thereverse order. Going more into detail as to the action,

cylinder port a',-or otherwise stated, the lap cl will delay the admission to the cylinder port at, until the valve cavity 0 also opens to the said supply port a; and it should also be noted, that, on the movement of the valve toward the left, the inner end of the valve cavity d will open to the exhaust port h before the outer end thereof opens to the cylinder port a',or otherwise stated, the lap d will delay the exhaust through the said valve cavity d, until the cavity 0 also opens to exhaust. In view of the foregoing statements, it must be obvious, that this valve mechanism will aiford a highly efficient distribution of the [5 fluid on simple engines.

Turning now to the application of my invention to compound engines, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the numeral 8 represents the cylinder casting, the numeral 9 represents the high pressure and 10 the low pressure cylinder, the numerals 11 the pair of pistons, 12 the connecting trunk, 13 the dividing partition with packing ring 14., and 15 the piston rod,of a double compound engine, 2 5 shown as composed of two single cylinder compounds set tandem. The valve-seat, the valve-chest and the valve, in so far as marked with the same letters and numerals, correspond in all respects to the parts shown in 0 Fig. 1. The high pressure ports a however, while in respect to the low pressure ports a, they correspond to and take the place of the supply ports a in Fig. 1are, in this compound, extended to the high pressure cylin- 3 5 ders 9, and are separated from the valve-chest 4 by walls a and it must also be noted, that each high pressure port a crosses its co-opcrating low pressure port a, in order to reach its high pressure cylinder 9.

The valve 5, in Figs. 2 and 3, is identical with the valve shown in Fig. 1, with the exception that the ends thereof are outwardly extended, as shown at a so as to cover and overlap the said high pressure ports (1 These 5 laps a, with respect to admission from the valve-chest 4: to the high pressure ports a correspond to and serve the functions of the ordinary outside laps proper. Otherwise than in respect to this admission to the high pressure ports a under the control of the parts a a and, assuming the said high press-- ure ports a to be the supply ports, with respect to the admission ports a, of the low pressure cylinders,the distribution of the fluid as controlled by the valve on the compound, in Figs. 2 and 3, is identical with that 011 the simple engine, shown in Fig. 1. Suppose, for example, giving attention to the right hand compound, that the valve be thrown toward the left to the extreme of its travel. Then, the fluid from the valve chest 4, will be admitted into the high pressure port a and be conducted thereby across or around the co-operating low pressure port a into the high pressure cylinder 9. Suppose now that the valve be thrown toward the right to the extreme of its travel. Then the valve cavities c (1 will connect the high pressure port a? with the low pressure port a, permitting the fluid to pass from the high to the low pressure cylinder. Suppose again, the valve be thrown toward the left into the first assumed position,or the extreme of its travel. Then, the said valve cavities o d will connect the same low pressure port a with the final exhaust port I) in the seat, thereby permitting the final exhaust from the low pressure cylinder. This final exhaust from the low pressure cylinder is, of course, coincident with the admission to the high pressure cylinder, while the valve is thus in its extreme position toward the left. If attention should be given to the left hand compound, it would appear that the corresponding actions would take place in exactly the same way, but in the reverse order. Going now more into detail to trace the action of the laps, and again giving attention to the right hand compound, suppose the first movement of the valve, toward the left, to have taken place and the unexpanded fluid to have been thereby admitted to the high pressure cylinder. Then, on the movement of the valve toward the right, the outer end of the valve cavity d, will open to the high pressure port a before the inner end of said cavity at opens to the low pressure port a'-or otherwise stated, the lap d will delay the admission to the low pr essure port a, after the exhaust begins from the high pressure port a into said valve cavity, and until the valve cavity 0 also opens to said high pressure port a", whereupon, both cavities c and at will co-operate, to conduct the fluid from the high to the low pressure cylinder; and again, upon the return of the valve toward the left, the inner end of the valve cavity d will open to the final exhaust port h before the outer end thereof opens to the low pressure port a, or otherwise stated, the lap 61 will delay the final exhaust in said valve cavity d until the valve cavity 0 also opens to the final exhaust port I), whereupon, both cavities c and at will co-operate to efiect the final exhaust. Considering the valve as an entirety, in its relations to its seat, it is therefore apparent that the valve cavities c d serve, in one position of the valve, to connect one of the high pressure ports with one of the low pressure ports, and in the opposite positions of the valve, serve to connect the same low pressure port with the final exhaust port; and that the outside laps a control the admission from the chest to the high pressure ports. Hence, it is evident, that the fluid in traveling from the high to the low pressure port, and from the low pressure port to the final exhaust port, will pass in the same direction through the same valve cavities a (Z; and this being the case, the fluid must make a complete turn, in order to get from the high to the low pressure cylinder.

It has already been noted that each high pressure port a? crosses its co-operating low pressure port a. The importance of this I to the construction and the action of the valve mechanism herein shown and described, as

applied to double compound engines, it must be obvious that the distribution thereby effected for each compound, is independent of the distribution eifected in the,other,or otherwise stated, the fluid used in the one never com mingles with the fluid used with the other.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is as follows:

1. In a double compound engine, the'combination with a valve-seat having a central final exhaust port, a pair of low pressure ports, one on each side of said final exhaust port, and a pair of high pressure ports, one external of each cooperating low pressure port and crossing the same, of a valve having outside laps over said high pressure ports, and provided with the two internal cavities 0, each of which, in one position of the valve, connects one of said high with one of. said low pressure ports, and, in the opposite position of the valve, connects the same low pressure'port with said final exhaust port; and

whereby, the pistons will reciprocate together and are made to travel with the valve, both when the valve is cutting off admission to the high and to the low pressure cylinders, substantially as described.

2. In a double compound engine, the combination with a valve seat having a central final exhaust port, a pair of low pressure ports, one on each side of said final exhaust port, and a pair of high pressure ports, one external of each cooperating low pressure port and crossing the same, of a valve having outside laps over said high pressure port, and provided with four internal cavities c d, cooperating in sets of two, each set of which, in one position of the valve, cooperate to connect one of said high with one of said low pressure ports, and in the opposite position of the valve, cooperate to connect the same low pressure port with said final exhaust port, whereby an increased available admission area and an increased available exhaust area is obtained for a given valve travel, and the pistons are made to reciprocate together and to travel with the valve, when the valve is cutting off admission to the high and to the low pressure cylinder, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof Iaffix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ELLIS J. WOOLF.

Witnesses:

J AS. F. WILLIAMSON, EMMA F. ELMORE. 

